Total births
890
Girls' name · since 1886
Sylva
Sylva has 890 recorded births since 1886 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1919 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- 890
- total births
- 1886–2025
- years on record
- 1920s
- peak decade
- 24%
- born in that decade
890 girls have been named Sylva since 1886, though it isn't currently a top-ranked name.
Sylva has 890 recorded births among girls since 1886, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, though it falls outside today's most-used girls names, busiest in the 1920s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1886 to 2025.
- 890 total births
- 1886–2025 years on record
- 1920s peak decade
- 24% born in that decade
Data updated Jun 2026
The verdict
890 girls have been named Sylva since 1886, peaking in the 1920s, last recorded in 2025.
- 890
- total births
- 1886–2025
- years on record
- 1920s
- peak decade
- 24%
- born in that decade
1920s
Peak decade
24% of everyone ever named Sylva was born in this single decade.
1919
Single peak year
31 babies were named Sylva in 1919 - its busiest year on record.
Sylva's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Sylva's full recorded timeline at 1925, 42% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 58% in the earlier half -- a fairly even split across the full record. Its quietest year on record was 1890, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1919 peak of 31 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Sylva at a glance
Last recorded 2025Peak year
1919
Current rank
Unranked
Active since
1886
Sylva popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1886–2025
- Peak year (1919)
- 31
- Annual births at peak, across 140 years of records
Sylva popularity over time - boys
18 total births recorded since 1918 (Sylva as boys' name)
Sylva by decade
Total births in each ten-year window, peak vs trough at a glance
1920s was Sylva's strongest decade.
216 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 24% of all-time use.
Sylva births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 14
1880s
14 births
- 1890s 73
1890s
73 births
- 1900s
1900s
95 births
- 1910s
1910s
210 births
- 1920s
1920s
216 births
- 1930s
1930s
136 births
- 1940s 60
1940s
60 births
- 1950s 31
1950s
31 births
- 1960s 26
1960s
26 births
- 1970s 10
1970s
10 births
- 1980s 7
1980s
7 births
- 2010s 5
2010s
5 births
- 2020s 7
2020s
7 births
What this shows Peak: 1920s at 216 births (24% of all-time use).
How Sylva compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 girls names closest to Sylva's total volume
Sylva vs 15 similarly-sized girls names
Sylva by state
Where Sylva concentrates geographically, total births since 1886
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Sylva? ▼
890 babies have been named Sylva since 1886. It was last recorded in 2025. The peak year was 1919 with 31 births.
When was Sylva most popular? ▼
Sylva was most popular in the 1920s decade with 216 total births. The single peak year was 1919.
Where is Sylva most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Sylva are Arkansas (5 births), Idaho (5 births).
How long has the name Sylva been used? ▼
Sylva has been recorded in Social Security data since 1886, spanning 140 years of data through 2025.
What names are similar to Sylva? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Sylvia, Sylvie, Sylvana, Sylvester, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.
What to do with Sylva's data
- Sylva's decade-level peak was the 1920s (216 total births); usage has since declined to 7 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Arkansas records the most Sylvas (5 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Arkansas names
- Weighing it against an alternative? Put two names side by side. Compare names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Sylva
Nearby Names Like Sylva
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Sylva
Sylvia Girl
#361 245,070 births
Sylvie Girl
#356 8,444 births
Sylvana Girl
#13699 817 births
Sylvester Girl
627 births
Sylvania Girl
546 births
Compare Sylva side by side: Sylva vs Sylvia Sylva vs Sylvie Sylva vs Sylvana
Related Names
Names with a similar number of total births
Data Sources
Data as of June 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.
Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1886–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Cite this page
NameAlmanac Editorial. "Sylva: Baby Name Since 1886 - 890 Births, Peak 1919." NameAlmanac. Accessed via https://namealmanac.com/name/sylva. Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Sylva draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.